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T O P I C R E V I E W

sleyvas

Posted - 16 Apr 2018 : 14:11:16 So, when a lot of stuff was coming out for 2nd edition, I was in my 20's, and while I could blame it on lack of money..... I could also say there was SO MUCH stuff coming out that I just couldn't keep up.

So, with things slowing down in releases, I have found myself going back to these old resources now that I have the ability to research the past more. I'm just wondering how many other sages find themselves in a similar boat. For instance, while I had bought the Port of Raven's Bluff way back when... I didn't buy the City of Raven's Bluff. I had always assumed based on the name that it was strictly about this one city. I never realized the sheer volume of information on the Vast that's included in there (much of which I'd only seen in the FR Wiki and had assumed was from Polyhedron articles).

Similarly, I'd gotten the original Waterdeep and the north, city system, and Volo's guide to waterdeep (plus the original undermountain)... so I never got city of splendors from 2nd edition.

I'm just curious, is there any little gem like this that others around here have found so many years later than when it was released?

12 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First)

Markustay

Posted - 19 Apr 2018 : 05:24:36 I am constantly finding new stuff in things I've read dozens of times, especially stuff written by Ed. I think he has some sort of magical gift that just keeps adding to his written word long after he's done with it.

quote:Originally posted by George Krashos

I'm lucky to own most every published Realms source. The stuff I "missed" is obscure lore connections or references that I thought were isolated until I found a corresponding references in a whole different place/product. That's always a nice light bulb moment - or in a few cases a wince moment as the lore has been built on in a different direction that doesn't correspond to the newfound lore reference ...

-- George Krashos

Like that city in Halruaa?

I have a VERY good memory.

Well... at least I used to. Starting to have 'senior moments', dammit.

George Krashos

Posted - 17 Apr 2018 : 11:21:29 I'm lucky to own most every published Realms source. The stuff I "missed" is obscure lore connections or references that I thought were isolated until I found a corresponding references in a whole different place/product. That's always a nice light bulb moment - or in a few cases a wince moment as the lore has been built on in a different direction that doesn't correspond to the newfound lore reference ...

-- George Krashos

Gelcur

Posted - 17 Apr 2018 : 05:30:56 A friend of a friend several years back was on some hard luck and I managed pick up most of the 2E Realms material for a steal, I already had all the 3E material.

Out of all that material I always forget how much I love going through Prayers from the Faithful and Pages from the Mages. These two books are just full of interesting tidbits or random rare lore to pick up and use. They really walked a great line between lore and PC/DM game options. Elminster's Ecologies is another series I often forget exists also gets my mind going but in a different way. It is very descriptive of areas and habitats presenting information that should be conveyed to everyone who passes through these regions.

I'll be honest I love me 3E books and they are great for hard stats, answering the who, what, where, when. But my favorite resource in 3E that are never easily on hand are the crazy online articles, "The Lost Ship", "The Scarlet Mummers", "Waterdeep News". Again like the 2E material they really brought the world to life for me but rarely are my go to for some odd reason.

BadCatMan

Posted - 17 Apr 2018 : 02:09:00

quote:Originally posted by sleyvas

I didn't buy the City of Raven's Bluff. I had always assumed based on the name that it was strictly about this one city. I never realized the sheer volume of information on the Vast that's included in there (much of which I'd only seen in the FR Wiki and had assumed was from Polyhedron articles).

Indirectly, it is – the Vast lore in the back of The City of Ravens Bluff is lifted from Polyhedron articles. I relied on The City of Ravens Bluff when I wrote the Vast pages on the wiki. I got that book from the WotC site when they put some 1st- and 2nd-edition PDFs up for free. Hopefully one day I can find some more Polyhedrons and revisit the Vast.

quote:Originally posted by sleyvas

Along those lines, I had never heard of the village of Swords Pool near King's Reach. The "story" behind it is that when the right words are spoken 9 swords arise from the pool and you can pick one. Also the story is that these swords are "elsewhere" until the words are spoken and that the swords belonged to some adventuring band, and that some wizard created this spell to protect them. It occurs to me that if one wanted to introduce the concept of the book of nine swords into the realms, this makes a great place to put a hidden chapterhouse within some kind of hidden extraplanar place.

Someone did! I suggested a connection on the old WotC forums, and Eytan Bernstein picked it up for his Class Chronicles articles on the WotC site, connecting it to other Vast characters like Thallastam.http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Swords_Pool

quote:Originally posted by sleyvas

I will also have to heavily thank BadCatMan for his work on the FR Wiki related to Kara-Tur and the Hordelands (because while I have and had read the horde boxed set... its still a bit of gelatin in my head).

Takes a bow. Thank you! However, much of the good Hordelands pages on the wiki were written by Artemaz, so I can't take credit for those. My own work on Kara-Tur is more scattered at the moment. Anyway, I'm glad people are reading my pages about my favourite places in the Realms. It makes it all worthwhile really.

Bragi

Posted - 17 Apr 2018 : 01:17:59 I'm a collector of obscure lore so I really enjoy the old 2nd edition and prior items. The polyhedron articles on the Boarder Kingdom are great. I recently re-read the events that transpired in the comics during the Time of Troubles with Labelas and based the starting of my campaign around them trying to rescue Labelas from the demiplane of dreams.

There is so much information buried in those older sources that it seems almost endless. My group is now in the Vilhon Reach and I'm sorely tempted to pull out The Great Khan Game as a diversion for one session.

xaeyruudh

Posted - 17 Apr 2018 : 00:17:04

quote:Originally posted by sleyvas

So, with things slowing down in releases, I have found myself going back to these old resources now that I have the ability to research the past more.

I've had this experience with a lot of the original AD&D stuff. I had a 1e PH, DMG, and Deities & Demigods at various points, but I wasn't able to get any of the modules at the time. Fast-forward to finding G1 and G2 in my FLGS last year, and I snapped them up just to have them. Nostalgia, "what might have been," and all that jazz.

xaeyruudh

Posted - 17 Apr 2018 : 00:10:27

quote:Originally posted by Markustay

The Vilhon Reach book is one I never bought a physical copy of, and wished I had. Unfortunately, I was still a 'judge a book by its cover' kind of guy back then, and that cover was abysmal, IMO.

Mark, are we sure that we're not the same mind inhabiting two bodies? I keep wondering.

sleyvas

Posted - 16 Apr 2018 : 22:53:12

quote:Originally posted by Lord Karsus

-I've owned it for however long, a long time, but every time you flip through the Kara-Tur box set (PDF, more accurately), you find something new. That's partially because of how poorly organized the book is, but still.

That's another one I was going to list. I've never owned the physical, but I do have the PDF, and I never really looked at it until the last 3 years or so. It is actually very good. I've only barely scratched the surface on Kara-Tur. I will also have to heavily thank BadCatMan for his work on the FR Wiki related to Kara-Tur and the Hordelands (because while I have and had read the horde boxed set... its still a bit of gelatin in my head).

CorellonsDevout

Posted - 16 Apr 2018 : 21:26:05 I'm discovering stuff all the time LOL. I started out as a casual fan of the novels, and then the more novels I read, the more invested I became. But, even with the leaps in lore I have made, I feel like I have missed out on a lot. Scribes here will mention sourcebooks, and sometimes I will go on a hunt for them to read the referenced content for myself. But I haven't really read any Dragon articles, and I'm jealous of some of the knowledge the scribes here have lol. I buy the source books that interest me, so my knowledge is "selective" and reflects my interests, but there are lot of products I just don't have.

That said, I usually know more about the lore than those around me who play D&D, and I have read far more than the dear friend who first introduced me to the world LOL.

Lord Karsus

Posted - 16 Apr 2018 : 19:48:43 -I've owned it for however long, a long time, but every time you flip through the Kara-Tur box set (PDF, more accurately), you find something new. That's partially because of how poorly organized the book is, but still.

Markustay

Posted - 16 Apr 2018 : 19:29:41 I always forget there are two different Calimshan products, not including LoI.

The Vilhon Reach book is one I never bought a physical copy of, and wished I had. Unfortunately, I was still a 'judge a book by its cover' kind of guy back then, and that cover was abysmal, IMO.

Secrets of the Magister would probably be the best example of what you are talking about, in my case. I owned it, but just ignored it for years and years. I just assumed it was just an update of the 1e book.

sleyvas

Posted - 16 Apr 2018 : 14:30:54 Along those lines, I had never heard of the village of Swords Pool near King's Reach. The "story" behind it is that when the right words are spoken 9 swords arise from the pool and you can pick one. Also the story is that these swords are "elsewhere" until the words are spoken and that the swords belonged to some adventuring band, and that some wizard created this spell to protect them. It occurs to me that if one wanted to introduce the concept of the book of nine swords into the realms, this makes a great place to put a hidden chapterhouse within some kind of hidden extraplanar place.